Portable hair washing and coloring unit

ABSTRACT

Apparatus for caring for the hair while in a seated position and having a base attachable to the back of a chair and a wash basin projecting rearwardly of the upper end of the base. The base is provided with means whereby the unit can be adjusted vertically and there is a neckrest to support the back of the neck of the seated person.

[451 July 25, 1972 United States Patent Noel et al.

v FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS [54] PORTABLE HAIR WASHING ANDCOLORING UNIT [72] Inventors: Leona M. Noel, 2884 5th St.; Leo J. Bagel,

3/l923 Great Britain............................. 546,630 4/l956Belgium.......... 515,531 2/1955 Primary Examiner-Louis G. ManceneAssistant Examiner-4. N. Eskovitz Attorney-Fetherstonhaugh & Co.

416-1207 Douglas St., both of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada [22]Filed: May 13, 1971 [2]] App]. No.:

ABSTRACT Apparatus for caring for the hair while in a seated positionand having a base attachable to the back of a chair and a wash mhn m 1 md ed mm 1] 8 55 [52] U.S.Cl...

basin projecting rearwardly of the upper end of the base. The base isprovided with means whereby the unit can be adjusted vertically andthere is a neckrest to support the back of the neck of the seatedperson.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,456,655 Hale.........................................132/9 3Claims,4l)rawing FiguresPatented July 25, 1972 I VII/ OIS L EONA M. NOEL LEO .1. HAGEL ATTORAIEPORTABLE HAIR WASHING AND COLORING UNIT Our invention relates toapparatus which is intended for use while shampooing or coloring thehair.

Many people find it awkward and inconvenient to wash their hair whilebending over a sink since they are inclined to bump their heads on thefaucets and the water and shampoo running down over the face sometimesinto the eyes is annoying to adults and is particularly distressing tochildren. Women who use strong hair solutions or coloring tints must tryand keep such liquids away from the face and eyes and this they finddifficult to do while washing or tinting the hair in the normalforwardly-bent position.

We overcome this particular problem and avoid most of the discomfortsusually experienced when caring for the hair by providing a unit whichenables the washing to be done while seated with the head tilted backand the neck supported on a rest so that the face normally is nottouched by the water, shampoo or other solutions. The present apparatuscan readily be stored in a closet or elsewhere and, when required, canbe removed and conveniently mounted on the back of a type of chair foundin most homes, hospitals and the like, the chair normally beingpositioned alongside kitchen or bathroom sink. By adjusting the unitvertically on the chair, a wash basin of the device can be positioned ata height most suitable for either a seated adult or ajuvenile.

In drawings which illustrate a preferred embodiment of the invention,

FIG. 1 is a plan of a unit, in accordance with the present invention,

FIG; 2 is a vertical section taken on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a detailed section taken on the line 33 of FIG. 2, and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a clamp valve of the unit.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral indicates a portion of a typicalchair such as may be used to support the present invention, the chairillustrated having a seat 11 and back 12.

Such a chair 10 provides a convenient means of mounting a unit generallyindicated by the numeral 15 and comprising a base 16 and a wash basin17. Preferably, the unit 15 is molded I of a suitable tough,hard-wearing, and readily cleaned plastic,

the base 16 and basin 17 being integrally formed by a single injectionmolding operation.

Base 16 is a hollow or substantially sleeve-like structure having afront wall or backrest 20, parallel side walls 21, and a rear wall 22.The wall 22 need only extend a short distance above lower edge 23 of thebase 16 as shown in FIG. 2. This particular construction provides asubstantially tubular and oblong base 16 which may he slipped over theback 12 of the kitchen chair so as to be supported thereby with thebasin l7 projecting to the rear roughly parallel to the seat 11. Thebackrest 20 is partly concave or curved transversely between the sidewalls 21 of the base to conform to the curvature normally found on theback of most chairs. The rear wall 22 is adapted to engage the back 12to prevent the upit 15 from tilting rearwardly whenever the seatedperson leans back as she is required to do when washing her hair in thebasin 17.

In order that the wash basin 17 may be supported a suitable distanceabove the seat 11, the unit 15 is provided with means generallyindicated at 30 for adjusting the base 16 substantially vertically ofthe back 12. As shown in FIG. 2 and in detail FIG. 3, the means 30comprises a horizontal bar 32 which slidably projects through slots 33formed in the side walls 21. The slots 33 are regularly spaced apart atsuitable vertical intervals and the bar 32 is provided with a downwardlyextending hand grip 35 (FIG. 3) on one end which is adapted to engage anadjacent side wall 21 whereby to limit sliding movement of said bar inthat direction. Thus, the bar 32 can be mounted in a selected pair ofhorizontally aligned slots 33 to rest on the top of the chair back 12and this arrangement enables the unit 15 to be lowered as would berequired for a youngster or elevated for use by an adult.

Projecting from the sides of the wash basin 17 and connecting with theupper edge of the backrest 20, are horizontal top flanges 36 and 37(FIG. I) which provides the basin with a small counter space on eitherside of the unit. The flange 36 is provided with L-shaped slots 38 and39 which extend inwardly from the outer edge of said flange as shown inFIG. 1, these slots being adapted to receive spray and drain hoses whichwill be described later. Flange 37 has a well 40 formed therein to houseshampoo and other bottles as well as the numerous other accessoriescommonly used when washing or coloring the hair.

A substantially semi-circular recess is formed in the upper edge of thebackrest 20 in the center of the unit 15, this downwardly curving recessextending a short distance into the rim of the basin 17 to provide aneckrest 44. Thus, a person occupying the chair 10 and tilting her headback so that her hair falls into the basin 17, can support her neck andhead in a reasonably comfortable position.

Basin 17 has a short outlet pipe 46 and this centrally disposed pipe isadapted to be fitted with a drain hose 47 which may be some 6 feet inlength. The flexible hose 47 conveniently can be secured to the outletpipe 46 by a conventional hose clamp 48 and the opposite end 49 of saidhose is fitted with a suction cup 50. By means of the cup 50, the openend 49 of the drain hose can be secured to the side of a bathtub,toilet, bathroom, or kitchen sink so that the contents of basin 17 canbe drained away when required.

The unit 15 is provided with valve means 54 for controlling the flow ofwaste water through the flexible hose 47. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, themeans 54 may comprise a conventional drain plug 55 fitted to the outletpipe 46 within the basin 17 but preferably, said means comprises a clampvalve 56 which can be secured to the hose 47. As shown best in FIG. 4,the clamp valve 56 consists of a metal spring which is shaped to providetop and bottom portions 58 and 59 connected by a semicircular bend 60.Opposite the bend 60, the portion 59 has an end portion 61 whichprojects upwardly towards free edge 62 of the portion 58. A stop 63 isformed on the end potion 61 and this stop is adapted to engage the freeedge 62 when the portions 58 and 59 are pressed together against theresistance offered by the metal spring. Bend and the portions 59 and 61have two openings 64 and 65 through which the hose 47 projects when theclamp valve 56 is secured to the hose as shown in FIG. 4. The portions58 and 59 have opposing ridges 66 and 67 formed therein and, when thefree edge 62 is positioned beneath the stop 63, these ridges crimp thehose 47 so as to cut off the flow of water therethrough. When the unit15 is not in use, the hose end 49 is entered into the slot 38 so thatthe drain hose 47 is stored folded neatly beneath the basin 17.

The slot 39 is used to store a water supply hose 60 which is fitted witha spray head 61. Hose 60 is the type which has an end 62 capable ofbeing attached to any kitchen or bathroom faucet, not shown.

The operation of the unit 15 will be easily understood from the abovedescription but it should be noted the weight of the person seated inthe chair 10 and leaning against the backrest 20 will hold the basin 17steady during the hair washing procedure. The basin 17 may be filledusing the hose 60 which is also used during the rising operation and thevalve means 54 is actuated as required emptying the waste water. Whenthe washing or tinting operation has been completed, the hoses 47 and 60are stored in the slots 38 and 39 and after the unit 15 has been wipedoff, it can conveniently be stored in a cupboard or elsewhere and thechair 10 returned to its normal position of use in the kitchen.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent we have provided a simple andinexpensively constructed article which would be found extremely usefulnot only in the home but in hospitals and other institutions as well.Sick or elderly patients who might not be able .to stand bent over asink for any length of time might be capable of sitting in a chairbeside their beds so as to have their hair washed in the unit 15. Watercan be carried to the basin 17 in a jug and waste water could betemporarily stored in a bucket for later disposal when the unit is usedin a location where a sink or the like is not available.

We claim:

1. Portable hair washing and coloring unit comprising a base attachableto the back of a chair, a rearwardly projecting wash basin on the upperend of the base, said wash basin having a drain pipe, a flexible hoseconnected to the drain pipe, and valve means for controlling the flow ofwaste water through the flexible hose, said base having a front wallproviding a backrest for a person seated in the chair, and a neckrestbetween the backrest and the wash basin, said base being a sleeve-likestructure telescopically fitting over the chair back and having sidewalls, each of said side walls having a plurality of vertically spacedslots, and a bar slidably extending through horizontally aligned slotsto rest on the upper edge of the chair back and position the wash basina selected distance above the chair seat.

2. A unit as claimed in claim 1, in which said valve means comprises aclamp valve attachable to the flexible hose, said clamp valve havingopposing portions between which the flexible hose extends, one of saidportions having a stop, and the other of said portions having a freeedge engaged by the stop when the flexible hose is closed by theclamping action of the clamp valve.

3. A unit as claimed in claim 2, and including a suction cup on an endof the flexible hose remote from the drain pipe.

1. Portable hair washing and coloring unit comprising a base attachableto the back of a chair, a rearwardly projecting wash basin on the upperend of the base, said wash basin having a drain pipe, a flexible hoseconnected to the drain pipe, and valve means for controlling the flow ofwaste water through the flexible hose, said base having a front wallproviding a backrest for a person seated in the chair, and a neckrestbetween the backrest and the wash basin, said base being a sleeve-likestructure telescopically fitting over the chair back and having sidewalls, each of said side walls having a plurality of vertically spacedslots, and a bar slidably extending through horizontally aligned slotsto rest on the upper edge of the chair back and position the wash basina selected distance above the chair seat.
 2. A unit as claimed in claim1, in which said valve means comprises a clamp valve attachable to theflexible hose, said clamp valve having opposing portions between whichthe flexible hose extends, one of said portions having a stop, and theother of said portions having a free edge engaged by the stop when theflexible hose is closed by the clamping action of the clamp valve.
 3. Aunit as claimed in claim 2, and including a suction cup on an end of theflexible hose remote from the drain pipe.